Most everyone knows how to get to Counseling Services on campus, but despite it being readily available, students can be resistant and reluctant to go. Often, students look at the need for therapy as a failure, and many of those who schedule appointments do not know what they should get out of that time.
Eva Grace Bedell, a senior public relations major at Union, said that she did not yet have the right frame of mind when she first went to find a counselor.
“Freshman year, I didn’t know what to expect at all. I just was like, ‘This seems like something I really need,’ but it wasn’t like I went into it thinking, ‘This is something that I need for my long-term health and wellness,’” Bedell said.
Bedell found that counseling was something that helped her long-term growth and mental health. It didn’t have to be only for students who have undergone difficult life struggles, but also for those who simply wish to grow themselves.
“There is no better place than Union University where your counselors are going to be Christian, and where they’re going to help you bring spiritual matters into the conversations that you’re having,” Bedell said. “They help you grow not just emotionally, but spiritually as well.”
Many Christians at Union have backgrounds that discourage therapy, and Josh Krebs, a licensed professional counselor working at both Union and in private practice, noted that there can be a belief that those who give their cares to God shouldn’t have a need for counseling.
“The trouble is, what happens when your brain isn’t functioning properly?” Krebs said. “What happens when there is a problem in the way that you think, or a problem in the way your brain’s chemistry is working? Then you need someone’s help to figure out what the problem is.”
Krebs noted that sometimes you can “cast your anxieties at the cross,” and yet your brain and body can hinder that.
“Sometimes you are saying, ‘Lord, I trust you, I believe you will take my anxiety away,’ but your heart rate is still 130 beats per minute, and you’re having tightness in your chest. That’s not a lack of faith,” Krebs said.
He and the other counselors at Union share a love for the Lord and work to help students get where they want to be both mentally and spiritually.
“We are to grow in our faith by the renewing of our mind, and the renewing of our mind happens through the study of scripture, but also through the practices we do in our body,” said Krebs. “It’s about offering our bodies as living sacrifices; it’s about that mind-body connection.”
Director of Counseling Services Tamarin Huelin says this isn’t a substitution for biblical discipleship. Discipling and counseling are separate, with the former being focused on guiding people to Christ and the latter being focused on mental health. If the client doesn’t wish to talk about Christianity, the counselor can’t inject that into the conversation.
“As counselors, our job is to get to know our clients and their stories, and if they want we can help them connect their story to God’s story,” Huelin said. “But some people don’t want that, and our job is not to make that happen, but just to sit with them where they are and try to be with them in the place they’re in.”
For those who do want that conversation, Union is a unique space where that is possible. Huelin says that there is a great opportunity at Union to be able to bring the students’ spiritual stories into the counseling room and help them grow in their relationship with the Lord.
Union’s Counseling services have certainly impacted many students, and to those still hesitant to try it out Bedell recommends going for it.
“At the end of the day, this is from the Lord, and it’s something that should and can be utilized,” said Bedell. “It’s an opportunity to work through your own thoughts and speak your mind and have someone be able to work through those things alongside of you. Take advantage of that opportunity.”
To learn more about health services or to schedule an appointment, visit: https://www.uu.edu/studentlife/health-services/
